It is with great excitement and anticipation that I assume the role of Editor-in-Chief of New Forests. I sincerely appreciate the dedication of Steve Hallgren as Editor-in-Chief of the journal over the past 15 years. The Editorial Board (past and present) is also commended for maintaining a high standard for dissemination of quality research.

Looking back at the first Editorial Note from Volume 1 in 1986 written by Mary Duryea and John Gordon is enlightening. So much has changed, yet so much remains the same. Over the past 25 years, New Forests has certainly met their goal of delivering sound science in the field of reforestation to managers and scientists worldwide. Since this time, the scope of the journal has expanded greatly to encompass the dynamic evolutions in our field. Examples include the prominent shift in many regions from commercial forestry toward forest restoration, and an ever-increasing emphasis on clonal forestry.

As we look toward the future, it is essential that the journal continues to make tangible contributions to the development of scientific theory and science-based application in current high priority areas. While the journal will still prioritize the dissemination of results that have important implications for forest management, greater emphasis will be placed on scientific impact. We will institute changes to improve the efficiency and speed of handling submitted manuscripts, increasing our selectivity of papers for their scientific quality, actively recruiting high quality original research and reviews from leading authors in the field, and soliciting important special issues. These changes will produce a cyclical effect whereby the quality of research published should rise as the visibility of the journal within the scientific community is enhanced. This progression will bode well for our field of forest regeneration and increase the confidence with which managers are able to apply this science to operation.

While the primary scope of New Forests will remain focused on reforestation, afforestation, and restoration (via natural or artificial means), additional emphasis will be placed on attraction of timely, high quality papers in emerging fields such as urban forestry, carbon sequestration, biomass production, and precision forestry.

As the journal moves forward, I encourage continued feedback on its goals, scope, content, and format. Through the contributions of many, the journal continues to heavily impact our scientific knowledge of the processes of forest regeneration while simultaneously delivering sound science to managers that directly influences the manner in which we establish and maintain our future forests worldwide.

Sincerely, Douglass F. Jacobs.